Dragon Age: The Veilguard is out tomorrow, October 31. Whether you’re a seasoned veteran of developer BioWare’s fantasy RPGs or a newcomer looking to see what all the fuss is about, it’s worth noting that The Veilguard represents a pretty drastic shift from the tactical, open-zone RPG gameplay of its predecessor, Dragon Age: Inquisition. So no matter what your previous experience, there are a few things worth noting before you dive into this long-awaited return to Thedas. I’ve put over 60 hours into the game, so here are a few things I’ve learned for you to keep in mind as you get started.
At least be aware of Dragon Age: Inquisition’s story
A lot of big video game companies are quick to tell you that every new entry in a long-running series is a great place to jump in, even when it’s demonstrably untrue like Final Fantasy VII Rebirth. The Veilguard makes some pretty deliberate choices to leave the past behind, importing minimal choices from previous games and taking place in a different region, but it’s still hardly a self-contained story that you should just jump into with no prior knowledge. My most honest recommendation is to play through all of the Dragon Age games and a few pieces of DLC, but if you just don’t have the time and patience for all that, at least read or watch a summary of the events of Dragon Age: Inquisition and its Trespasser DLC. The Veilguard will give you a brief and kind of vague recounting of a few details when you boot it up, but it’s woefully insufficient in giving you a full sense of what led to the game’s opening moments.
Don’t pick your faction based on fashion
Dragon Age: The Veilguard shows off several casual outfits and “aspirational” armors tied to your hero’s faction in the character creator. The faction you choose for Rook (the protagonist) gives the character a backstory that ties them to different places and cultures within the Dragon Age universe. But if you’re anything like me, you’re trying to serve at any given moment in an RPG, and I was conflicted about my faction choice because I wanted one of the sluttier outfits. However, this is your PSA that every casual outfit and aspirational armor you see in the character creator is available later in the game, so make the choice based on the story you want to tell, rather than the clothes you want to wear. You’ll find these outfits and armors in stores tied to their respective faction when you reach them in your playthrough.
Don’t accidentally skip the Inquisitor customization screen
The Veilguard lets you create two characters at the beginning of the game. One is Rook, the hero you’ll be playing as, and the other is the Inquisitor, the protagonist from 2014’s Dragon Age: Inquisition. However, while the screen to customize the latter isn’t buried, it’s not as visually apparent as it probably should be. On the last two pages of Rook’s customization, you’ll see an option on the right-hand side to go to a different screen to create the Inquisitor and make three choices from the last game that will carry over. Unfortunately, it’s entirely possible to miss this screen, and the game doesn’t do much to direct your attention to it. You won’t have another chance to make the Inquisitor or these choices, and if you don’t, you’ll get hit with a default that might look and think nothing like your old hero.
You can only sell valuables at certain stores
Speaking of in-game shops, you’ll pick up a lot of valuables throughout your adventure that only exist to be sold to merchants you meet in Thedas. However, you might notice that not every shopkeeper is looking to buy your garbage. Each region has a specific merchant that is tied to the local faction, such as the Shadow Dragons in Minrathous or the Antivan Crows in Treviso. These will have a specific menu option to let you sell valuables, as well as upgrade their shops with other materials you find on your quests. Selling valuables to these shops will also increase the faction’s power, which is another way to improve relationships with groups beyond doing their quest lines.
Keep an eye out for gifts for your teammates
Like in previous Dragon Age games, you can give gifts to your companions for an approval boost. (However, you unfortunately don’t get a new conversation out of it.) You can typically find these in the various shops around Thedas, with the gift often corresponding to the companion whose faction is based in that region.
Dodge-roll into potion pots
Throughout The Veilguard, you’ll see green pots that have a healing potion inside them. While the most obvious route to breaking these open would be to hit them with your sword/axe/dagger/orb, one strategy I used during frantic boss fights was to just dodge-roll into them. This will still break the pot and have you grab the potion as you pass through it, and won’t lock you into a static animation that leaves you vulnerable to an attack. “Do a barrel roll, Rook!” – Varric, probably
Look for conversations around the Lighthouse, not just in companion rooms
For most of The Veilguard’s companion conversations, you can rely on lit-up lanterns outside each character’s quarters to know when your party members want to talk to you. However, a lot of banter and side conversations are happening around the Lighthouse throughout the game, and you’ll have to seek these exchanges out. You can see if some characters aren’t in their rooms through the map, so check it every time you come to the Lighthouse because folks are rarely in the same place twice. You can stumble upon party members talking to each other, or they might have an observation to share with you, so be sure to make your rounds every time you head back to home base.
Never sacrifice power for fashion or vice versa
We touched on how your fashion doesn’t have to be determined by your faction, but it also doesn’t have to be determined by stats. The Veilguard has a pretty straightforward transmog system that lets you equip your most powerful armor and weapons while also placing a custom appearance on top of it. My mage Rook sports a slick Shadow Dragon leather armor set while also getting the stats of ill-fitting metal armor meant for the tankiest of warriors. Best of both worlds, baby. You can edit your appearance in Rook’s room in their wardrobe.
You can change your appearance throughout the game
Dragon Age: The Veilguard’s character creator is extensive, and odds are you’ll spend a lot of time making your Rook look exactly how you want them to. But if you start playing the game and find you don’t like how something looks, you can tweak your appearance at any point by examining the mirror in the infirmary. So don’t get so caught up in the finer details that you feel like you can’t actually start playing the game until your Rook looks “perfect.”
You can respec at any time
If you’re not feeling the abilities or specialization you’ve picked a few hours in, The Veilguard lets you respec from the Skills menu at any time. This is a good way to encourage experimentation and let you feel out every build option in the game. I was pretty happy with the dagger-based Spellblade specialization, but if I wanted to, I could reset all my Rook’s points and try out a drastically different play style without any drawbacks. So try things out without worrying that you’re committing to any one build.
Romance has no restrictions
Dragon Age: Inquisition is known for its diverse romances that are also restricted based on gender and race. However, The Veilguard has no such restrictions. The sequel thankfully manages to avoid the “playersexual” trope by establishing that each of its characters are pansexual rather than letting that just feel like something that’s defined by the player’s presence, but if you were concerned that you needed to play a certain gender or race to wife up your favorite companion, worry not.
Don’t neglect the memory quests
There’s a series of quests in The Veilguard that I can’t believe is optional, but it is. Spread across The Crossroads, a hub that connects all the other regions you can explore in the game, these quests involve flashbacks to antagonist Solas’ past, and each one contains a debrief with the team that has some major Dragon Age lore drops. You’ll have to seek them out, so be on the lookout for translucent, glowing barriers throughout The Crossroads, as walking through these will give you a glimpse into the elven god’s past.
Read the missives
Dragon Age: The Veilguard has an equivalent to Mass Effect’s email system called Missives. You’ll get pop-up notifications that you received a new one when you return to the Lighthouse after most quests. These letters will come from companions and people you met around Thedas, and give you some notable insight into things going on outside your field of view in the Dragon Age world. Unfortunately, they’re buried in the pause menu next to the codex, rather than somewhere like the email terminals in Mass Effect, so it can be easy to forget about them if you don’t make a point to seek them out.
Revives are attached to equipment
If you die in The Veilguard, you’ll notice there’s a “Revive” option next to the one that lets you reload a previous save. By default, you won’t be able to actually use the Revive function to stand right back up where you were in the fight, even as the game taunts you with the possibility on the game over screen. Revives are tied to rare pieces of equipment you’ll find for your companions. Having those revive charges will let your party members resuscitate you when you fall in battle, but that option will come at the expense of other utilities and upgrades. It’s a meaningful trade-off, but there was never a point where I wasn’t glad to have a revive on hand.
You can make your Rook trans, but you need to pick the option when you see it
We wrote about this already, but if you missed it, Dragon Age: The Veilguard has an option to explicitly make your Rook trans early in the game. When you set up your hero’s quarters, you’ll place a handheld mirror down and have a moment for self-reflection. Here you’re able to pick dialogue options that confirm your Rook is trans, which unlocks new dialogue options to discuss this with other characters. However, as far as I can tell, this is the only chance the game gives you to make this decision. If that’s the route you want to go with your Rook, don’t miss it.
You can import your Rook when you start a new playthrough, but there’s no New Game+
For some reason, Dragon Age games never have New Game+ and The Veilguard is no exception. However, BioWare did do one thing right on this front, as it still allows you to import your Rook’s appearance into new playthroughs. So if you’re like me and get attached to the characters you make and want to run them again in your second playthrough, you can do that, unlike in previous Dragon Age games that made you recreate them every time.